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DJ Bettencourt Supports Voter Fraud

In a tweet today, Republican House majority leader DJ Bettencourt embraced Fibitas and criticized those of us calling for strict enforcement of our voter fraud laws:

- https://twitter.com/#!/DJBette…” Fascinating some want to prosecute individuals who had guts to prove our election system had huge hole in it. Didn’t actually illegally vote “

Guts? These Fibitastas used the names of recently deceased NH residents (showing an incredible lack of empathy for their families) and led election officials to believe that they were entitled to vote. In at least one case, the Fibitasta actively engaged in impersonation, contrary to Fibitas’s assertion that they were careful not to say they were the dead voters.Instead of putting himself on the side of Fibitas, Bettencourt should be joining Republican Mayor Ted Gatsas and Republican Party Chair Wayne McDonald in calling upon the authorities to fully investigate the Fibitas actions and to fully enforce our voter fraud laws. The only way to deter voter fraud is to enforce the laws prohibiting voter fraud. It is shocking, but not surprising, that Bettencourt does not agree in strong enforcement of exisitng voter fraud laws. After all, IOKIYAR.

The widow of a a deceased US Navy veteran puts a human face on the intrusion by O’Keefe and his pals. Imagine losing a family member, and then finding out that not even ten days later some creep is using his name in a publicity stunt?

“That’s awful,” Rachel Groux said. “Why should they use his name? They shouldn’t use anybody’s name – alive or deceased.”

His family held funeral services Monday, his widow said. “Oh my God, I know what he would say, ‘Call the cops, call the police,’ ” Rachel Groux said.

Aside from how distasteful–and illegal–this action was, I’m most surprised by the lack of discussion of how implausible it is that anyone would ever vote illegally in this manner.

For all the feigned outraged of O’Brien, Bettencourt & Partners, it would be exhausting for anyone actually looking to illegally vote to pull this off. Someone unregistered to vote or looking to vote twice would have to sift through obituaries for recently deceased, travel to the precinct in question, hope the name of the recently deceased had not already been stricken from the checklist, present the name and verify the address of the recently deceased, and hope that no one present recognized them as an impostor.

Personally, I just don’t believe someone would be able to do exert the energy to do that… except as a right-wing publicity stunt.

people, but most people don’t learn from other’s mistakes and the best we can hope for is to deter a repetition by the same perp.O’Keef, obviously, is not deterred from misbehavior by slaps on the wrist. He insists on being offensive and his gift of gab seems to get him out of the consequences. That should be noted. He’s a repeat offender.

A recurring Republican argument in favor of the death penalty is its ability to deter future crimes punishable by death. For this theory to work, the state would have to actually put some people to death, otherwise its an empty deterrent. No punishment – no deterrent.

Ergo, if the Republican concern for instituting a voter ID law is really to stop voter fraud, it stands to reason they would stop at nothing to fully prosecute anyone caught engaged in election fraud. You know, to deter anyone thinking of election tampering.

Otherwise, their true reason for pursuing voter ID laws is not to stop voter fraud.

If the likelihood of getting caught stealing $1000 is 10%, and the penalty is $5000, repeat the crime (using stooges) 10 tens and clear $5000. Someone will figure out how to make a career on that spread.

Not only would be exhausting, it would ineffective, since not many people die each month. Most voters start voting at age 18 or so and keep on voting for 60 to 75 years. Less than 2% of the electorate dies each year. If you just want to use names from the last few months, you have less than 1.2 of 1% to pick from… and most of that tiny fraction are old people who would be well-known in their community. And even the young or unfamous ones would have probably had an obit in the local paper along with a ceremony honoring their lives.

did a segment on this tonight featuring the guy who is covering this for TPM. They played some footage and the impersonator did take the ballot that was handed to him. He handed it back,saying he was going to get his id, but he took the ballot.

They reportedly used the names of New Hampshirites who passed away as recently as last month.

If I found out that the name of a very recently deceased relative of mine had been used in these shenanigans, I would not be comforted by the assertion that it was a well-meaning effort to identify room for improvement–even if I were inclined to believe that.

Spencer Meads, 21, of Nashua, N.H., can’t vote in Ohio, but that didn’t stop him from manning phones for Mr. Kasich Saturday in Delaware. The politics and government student at nearby Ohio Wesleyan University is president of the College Republicans.

I’ve just been reading some of the obituaries of the men whose names were stolen by these punks. All seniors. Most if them were veterans, several WW II vets. Working people. All Democrats. They are entitled to respect and dignity in death, not to be used by some pissants in some fraudulent act.

Isn’t Rep. Bettencourt planning on submitting his name to the Character & Fitness Committee of the NH Supreme Court? Does he honestly think that condoning the commission of an illegal act is something that they will view kindly?